27 years on the road. Built for the nomads.
From a beach bar in Aruba to a laptop in Bali. The tools changed. The truth did not. This is the story behind NomadsToolsLab.
I am Chenzo.
I have been traveling for 27 years. From a beach bar in Aruba to a laptop in Bali, with eleven years of backpacking, a houseboat in Berlin and a van and a caravan in between. Below you find it in six short parts.
People call me the King of Traveling. I just keep changing the gear, the routers, the laptops, and the visa stamps.
The road never ends, it just changes shape.
NomadsToolsLab is everything I learned, distilled into one site for the nomads coming after me.
From a beach bar in Aruba to a laptop in Bali
How it started: 100 euros and a beach bar
I flew to Aruba with 100 euros because a friend was getting married. Almost everyone there spoke Dutch, and I thought: I have landed in paradise. I told my friend to give away everything in my house, because I was not coming back. Everyone thought I was crazy.
Within five minutes on the island I asked for the best beach bar and whether they needed a bartender. The boss said I could start that day, gave me a room in his villa and lent me an old jeep. I earned next to nothing, but I could eat and drink at work and I paid no rent. The rest was just fun.
After a while my boss asked me to help open the same concept on Curacao, so I went there too.
Eleven years with a backpack
Then I backpacked through South America for eleven years. I worked in clubs, bars, restaurants, rafting companies and as a tour guide, because I speak a lot of languages.
Once I walked into a harbor with a bottle of wine and asked everyone where they were going. After three days I found a couple who took me on their sailboat to Venezuela, and from there I just continued with my backpack.
Europe, and a houseboat in Berlin
Back in Europe I lived in Berlin for a few years and traveled all over the continent. For a while I traveled with the Rainbow Gathering, as a nomad and as a hippie too, living in nature, with awareness. Then I spent another year in South America, which I loved.
After that I went back to Berlin and built my own houseboat: a big raft, a cabin boat and a dinghy, my own pirate boat, all DIY, with solar panels and my own water filter systems. I lived on the water for five years, anchored in the middle of the Rummelsburger Bucht, so I paid no rent.
A van, a caravan and a chainsaw
After that I sold everything. I bought a caravan, and I already had a van. At first the van was my work van, full of chainsaws, because I did tree care. I had my own company in Germany.
Then I went to Spain and Portugal and lived off grid, with my own light, power and internet, and I could park anywhere. The van is a Renault Master and I built everything inside myself. In total I traveled seven years in a van and a caravan.
Now
Then I started following my life path. I went from physical work to sitting behind a computer, and that is how NomadsToolsLab started. Today I live in Bali, and I balance the desk with padel and boxing.
What I learned on the way
- Learn the basics of the language wherever you are, so you really connect with the locals.
- Adapt, show interest in the culture, and do not only sit with your own group. Otherwise you could just stay home.
- Trust your gut. Sometimes your head says things, but your gut is always the wisest.
- You do not need all that stuff, and you do not miss it.
The road has changed. The truth has not.
When I started traveling, there was no Slack. No Zoom. No eSIM. No portable Wi-Fi router. You used what was there.
I lived out of a backpack for eleven years and out of a camper and a caravan for a few more. I had a backpack stolen in South America, sat through 24 hour bus rides, and learned the hard way which gear lasts and which gear is hype.
In that backpack were clothes, a second phone, a tablet, money, shoes, crystals and my tarot deck, and probably my macrame things too. I took my losses, and after that I traveled lighter.
Today the tech is unrecognizable. Starlink. eSIMs. M3 MacBooks. Portable monitors that fit in a folder. Coliving spaces where the Wi-Fi is faster than most offices in Europe. The road is easier than ever. But the trap is also bigger than ever.
Every blog, every YouTube channel, every Instagram nomad is pushing some tool, some gear, some affiliate link. Most of them have been on the road for three years. Some for one. Many never tested half the stuff they recommend.
That is why I built NomadsToolsLab. 27 years of real road experience, applied to the modern remote work stack. Old-school traveling wisdom meets new-school tech.
What NomadsToolsLab promises
Three things I will never compromise on, no matter how big this site grows.
Tested before recommended
If a tool, app, or piece of gear gets a review here, I have either used it myself or researched it in depth, and the review tells you which. No paid placements disguised as reviews.
Honest, even when it hurts
If something is overrated, I say it. If a brand has gone downhill, I say it. If a cheaper alternative works just as well, I link to it. Trust is the only currency that matters online.
Built for the long road
Most nomad sites are written for beginners on a 6-month trip. NomadsToolsLab is for the long haul. The ones who actually live this life, year after year, country after country.
In the beginning my backpack was full of things I never used. After years on the road I carry less and less, and what I do carry has to last. That is what NomadsToolsLab is about. Learning the difference.
Want the same tools I use today?
Get my Digital Nomad Setup Guide. The exact tech stack, gear list, and software setup I use after 27 years on the road. Free.
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